Baxter's Irregulars: Errant Empire
by PunyHooman
Summary: Vheto Baxter was an officer of the Galactic Empire serving as the captain of an Imperial slave ship. A group of rebel prisoners with secret information are being held on his ship and Baxter is betrayed by Imperial Intelligence who wish for the rebels and the information to be destroyed. Against the odds, the ship, her crew, and her cargo survives. This is the crew's story.
1. Chapter 1

**_ Baxter's Irregulars: Errant Empire  
>Chapter 1: Betrayed<br>Empire Controlled Zin Taal System  
><em>**

**_2nd Day of the 6th Month, 17 BBY _**

* * *

><p>Twenty nine year old Lieutenant Vheto Baxter of the Imperial Navy sighed as he entered the bridge of the Imperial modified Gozanti-class cruiser <em>Freighter 221<em>. Every bridge member, most of them recruits or highly inexperienced, stood to attention the minute he stepped foot onto the bridge. "At ease." He stated, his voice lacking the enthusiasm these ensigns and junior grade officers had. "Time to Zin Taal?" Locke questioned as he was handed a report by a male ensign by the name of Victor. Victor filled in as Vheto's weapons control officer.

"We'll be on station shortly, sir. The Extell Prison Facility has informed us that they are ready to receive our prisoners." Lieutenant Junior Grade Alexander Stone, a young Imperial Navigator and Vheto's executive officer, reported.

Of Vheto's crew of twelve Navy crew, four pilots, and ten Stormtroopers, he was fond of the young Stone. He was definitely the smartest of the bunch and the only one that Vheto bothered getting to know. To Vheto, the entire crew of _Freighter 221_ and the ship itself was simply a setback in his career. He had joined the Republic Navy when he was twenty two and had been commissioned as an officer. He served aboard a cruiser as a junior tactical officer for two years until the start of the Clone Wars. He was pushed aside when the better Clones came and was regulated to garrison duty over Coruscant and didn't see combat until the Battle of Coruscant just two years ago.

When the Empire had risen, Vheto thought that he would be noticed for his loyalty and performance record. He was right, to a degree. He had been promoted, but he was pushed into captaining a freighter. For almost two years now he had captained _Freighter 221_ without protest. Now, however, he was letting himself slip. Performance no longer mattered. Every day blended into the next. He had lost count how many times he had made the run to the Extell Prison Facility in the last two years. Most of the time his ship held Wookie and Lasat prisoners.

On this run, however, Vheto had the immense honor (as his commander put it) of transporting six Corellian Rebels. The only reason the Rebels were being sent to the Extell facility was because of its remote placement. The planet Zin Taal was a desolate place with only a few homesteads spread across the temperate planet and was what command saw to be an ideal choice to place a max security containment facility. The Rebels would probably ruthlessly interrogated by some intelligence operative.

But that wasn't Vheto's concern. His concern was merely getting to Zin Taal, delivering his cargo, and returning to his Corellian home base. "Alright, Stone. Begin final preparations. I'm going to check on our passengers." Vheto stated with a slight grimace. He left the bridge as fast as he had entered, flanked by a single Stormtrooper.

The Stormtroopers aboard his ship wore the old Phase-II type armor from the Clone Wars. Only the front-line Stormtroopers got the newest armor. Garrison forces and marines were to be issued the old armor until the newer armor could be made available to all forces of the Empire. Considering there were trillions in service to the Empire, Vheto doubted this would happen anytime soon. "Tell me, Sergeant." He spoke to Sergeant Kotu, the leader of the ten Stormtroopers aboard, as they walked through the sixty meter in length ship. "When the hell are you and your boys getting shipped off this bucket?" He questioned.

Kotu was a first generation Fett clone who had served the Republic, and now the Empire, since the beginning of the Clone Wars. The troopers under his command, however, were all human recruits. "I don't know, sir. I'm still getting used to being a soldier of the Empire. One day I wake up and boom, out of nowhere my commanding officer informs me that I serve the Empire and everything I knew about the Republic was a lie. And slavery? I'm loyal but, off the record, I'm starting to question things, sir." Kotu trusted Vheto enough to tell him these things.

Vheto was a pre-Empire officer and Kotu knew that. "I know what you mean. Some of the things this Empire is doing is questionable. I'm no martyr of the Republic or anything like that but I'm seriously considering jumping ship and settling down somewhere quiet." The Lieutenant explained, whispering as he spoke.

Kotu nodded. "I'd consider coming with you, sir. I was bred to be loyal, but independent. The Empire is destroying everything I used to stand for. Of course, any of my men here me talking like this they'd turn me in for a treat and a pat on the head by Imperial Intelligence. Can't even speak off the record with any of the guys from the post-Republic. They're all brainwashed." Just as the Sergeant finished speaking, the duo rounded a corridor and reached the door to the containment cells, guarded by two Stormtroopers clad in their shiny Phase-II armor.

Both snapped to attention and saluted. Vheto returned the salute lazily. "Open the door." He ordered the guards.

"Yes, sir!" One of them said overzealously before opening the hatch. Vheto had to stifle a chuckle when the trooper spoke.

Kotu followed Vheto in, his E-11 blaster rifle at the ready. "Hey look!" One of the Corellians shouted. "It's the goon-in-command." He stated, gaining a short chuckle from his five other comrades.

Vheto simply sighed. "Funny, really." He said, his voice filled with obvious sarcasm. "Guards, leave me and the Sergeant alone." He ordered. The two guards both left, closing the door behind them. "Which one of you is in charge?" He questioned.

Nobody spoke at first until one man with a bald head and a grey-black beard stepped forward. "Commander Barrackman at your service, Empire. Let me just say I've enjoyed every second of captivity and would do it again in a heartbeat, but I do have one complaint. My men have been prisoners for three days and they haven't even been given a scrap to eat. What in the hell are you scum trying to do? Kill them?" He questioned, his voice stern. Barrackman was obviously concerned for his men.

"Listen, Commander. My job is to follow orders. Command said no food, so I followed my orders. You're military, or at least a militant, you should know how orders are." Vheto explained.

Barrackman laughed. "How quaint. Following orders without any question or doubt in your mind. You there, trooper. Clone or recruit?" The Commander questioned Kotu.

Before Vheto could speak, Kotu responded. "Clone." He growled.

"Ah, that explains your devotion." Barrackman stated simply.

Kotu was about to speak when_ Freighter 221_ shook and proximity klaxons began wailing. Ensign Stone's voice came over the ship's intercom. _"Lieutenant Baxter! We've been fired upon by a Tartan-class cruiser!"_ He reported.

Vheto's eyes went wide in surprise. He took out his personal communicator and contacted Stone. "Have you informed them that we are an Imperial freighter?" He questioned, voice filled with confusion.

_"Yes, sir. It's an Imperial Intelligence ship! They've been ordered to destroy us and our cargo!"_ Stone reported, voice filled with worry.

Commander Barrackman spoke up just after another barrage of fire hit _Freighter 221_. "You've been setup, Lieutenant. Imperial Intelligence wants my men and myself dead. Intelligence will write this off as an accident or a pirate attack." He stated, arms crossed behind his back calmly. The man was well into his forties and seemed to be calm and collective in what looked to be a desperate situation.

"Why?" Was the only thing Vheto managed to question.

"Because of the information me and my men have. You now have a price on your head and your ship has probably been wiped from any and all records. I'm going to ask you once. Let me and my men out and we will help you." Barrackman stated.

Kotu stepped forward. "Sir, they're communicating with my men through our helmet comms. They're saying anyone who kills you and these six will be rewarded by the Empire." Just as Kotu finished speaking, the two guards walked in with their blasters at the ready. Kotu, predicting their move, dived for cover and quickly took the two down with his E-11 blaster rifle in the time it took Vheto to draw his SE-14r blaster pistol.

"I suppose this means you're on my side, Sergeant?" Vheto questioned, his grip on his SE-14r growing tighter.

Kotu nodded. "I didn't just shoot two of my comrades in white for no reason." He explained, moving to guard the door.

Vheto then turned his attention back to his communicator. "Stone, prepare the ship for hyperspace. Raise the shields." He ordered.

Stone responded quickly. "Preparing the ship for hyperspace, sir. Standby." His voice was shaky and he was obviously quite nervous, but Vheto was more worried about surviving this fight.

Vheto turned to Barrackman and his others. "I'm trusting you. My crew, my ship, and my life are all on the line. So, Barrackman, where are we going?" The Lieutenant questioned as he approached the cell.

Barrackman spoke. "Geonosis. We'll be safe there for the time being. You Imperials abandoned the planet. It's our best bet right now." He explained as his men stood up, ready to be out of their cell.

In response, Vheto opened the door. "Kotu, use the intercom. Inform the crew of the situation. If they don't wish to join us, they may use the escape pods to jettison themselves away from us. Barrackman, you and your best shot grab those two rifles. Two others can grab their sidearms. Do not betray me." Vheto stated, respectfully nodding to Barrackman.

The Rebels grabbed the blasters and waited for their orders. As they did that, Kotu came over the intercom. "All crew, listen up. The Empire has betrayed us. Lieutenant Vheto Baxter has taken personal command of _Freighter 221 _from the Empire. Anyone loyal to the backstabbers may jump ship now via the escape pods. Anybody who wishes to stay with the ones who won't shoot you, allow the others to leave in peace. Violence will be punished. Commander Barrackman and his Corellians have been released." The Sergeant stated their situation before removing his helmet and turning to Vheto. "I don't know about these Rebels, but I do know you're the best bet I have for freedom." He explained.

Vheto nodded and pulled out his personal communicator. "Stone, input coordinates to Geonosis. We'll be safe there for the time being. How many escape pods have been launched?" He questioned quickly.

_"Two. Both of them were part of Kotu's Stormtrooper section."_ Stone reported just before the ship entered hyperspace, en-route to Geonosis.

"Have everybody else gather in the mess hall, including the bridge crew." Vheto then turned his communicator off. "Barrackman, you and your troops follow me and Kotu. We need to talk." The former Imperial officer stated calmly.

The group made their way in silence through the two hundred and six foot vessel. The mess hall was situated in the middle of the vessel, next to the armory, while the cargo area was placed near the rear of the ship. The galley was situated right behind the bridge area and was a simple area with two long tables and chairs alongside a food and drink processor.

By the time the entirety of the ship was gathered, there were twenty eight men and women not including Vheto. The former Imperial crew gathered themselves on one side of the galley while Barrackman and his Rebels gathered on the other side. "Alright. I know all of you have questions. I'll give you a crash course of the events that transpired. Barrackman has information that Imperial Intelligence wants so badly that they're willing to kill all of us and destroy this ship. And now that Barrackman is among us, we're all wanted." Vheto gave that a second to set in. "I know you have family and ties in the Empire. That's over now. All we have is each other. I gave you the option to leave. It's too late now. Those two that did leave will report to Intelligence that we are all traitors. I'm sorry." He stated as the crew came to the realization that they had been forsaken by everything they believed in.

One of the crewmen, Ensign Erik Carture, stood up from his seat. "What are your orders, sir?" They young, nineteen year old questioned. The rest of the crew stood behind Carture and nodded their heads.

"Barrackman, do we have an organization to fight for?" Vheto questioned, turning to the resistance leader.

Barrackman shook his head. "I used to command over a hundred men and women dedicated to fighting the Empire. We were wiped out and this all that remains of the Coronet City Resistance. There is no organized group of rebels. Just a bunch of cells and militia groups. My resistance was one of the best armed and we were wiped out in all of five minutes. We can't fight the Empire anymore. We shouldn't have in the first place." The Commander explained.

"You can wimp out if you want, Barrackman, but I think I speak for all twenty two of my crew when I say I'm not going down without a fight. I have a new cause. I served in the time of the Republic. When there was peace and prosperity. When the Jedi were guardians. When we were a democracy. When equality meant something. Then I served the Empire. A group of people led through fear and military force alone. The Imperials rule this galaxy. This is a dark time. You all remember what it was like before all of this. Barrackman, what was your profession in the time of the Republic? Were you always a soldier?" Vheto questioned.

"I was a Nerf farmer." He replied.

"And why did you choose to rebel?" Vheto asked with a raised brow.

Barrackman sighed. "Because the Republic used to stand for something. It stood for the people, not against it. It used to have a meaning." He stated.

"Out of you five, were any of you ever soldiers?" Vheto questioned, looking at the five men Barrackman used to lead. None of them spoke. "You all had professions. Farming, tailoring, business, shipping, none of that matters now. You all chose to lead a life of rebellion against a corrupt system, a system I served for almost two years. I was betrayed. My crew was betrayed. What information did you have that brought the force of Imperial Intelligence down us?" Vheto asked the Commander.

"Before our capture, we raided an Imperial facility in the heart of Coronet City. They put up a fight, one we had never seen from common Stormtroopers. We made it into the facility after taking some casualties. We had been informed that it was a weapons depot. We were wrong, we were so wrong. We discovered schematics of huge ships and superweapons that the Empire planned to unleash. We also discovered the location of a secret fleet of vessels, just waiting to be set loose on the galaxy. The Emperor has gone mad. There are over a hundred dreadnaughts and star destroyers in that fleet. Within minutes, there was a strike force charging though our base. It seems to be a last resort measure, but if word got out to the public or the senate... I'm assuming that's why Intelligence wants us dead. And now all of you know the jagged details." Barrackman explained in length, sitting down in one of the chairs.

Vheto nodded. "Alright. So you know about this fleet and about some superweapons. That's enough to get you executed in the Empire, for sure. For now, that's not what matters. The important thing is deciding what we do next." The former Imperial officer explained, pacing back and forth as he thought.

"We need more people." Barrackman stated bluntly. "This is nice and all, but we have twenty eight people in total and four pilots. That's not much to stave off the Empire. I'd suggest some of the Outer Rim planets. Nar Shaddaa would be my suggestion. No real Imperial presence and certainly no love for Imperials. I know a couple of guys that can help us. If we're serious about forming a successful rebellion, we'll need their help." The former Commander explained.

Lieutenant Junior Grade Jack Alexander, the lead pilot of the four pilots to the four V-Wings that were mounted underneath the ship, chuckled. "Are we being serious? Us? Start a rebellion? This is a Gozanti-class cruiser. It's armored, yes, but not well enough for what we need. With some weapons upgrades we could easily take on patrol cruisers, but anything larger would be suicide. We need more supplies. And for that, we're going to need credits." He explained.

Vheto nodded. "I agree. We can't show our intentions yet. We need credits and we're going to get them. We've got a ship that's probably been wiped from all registries. Cover up the Empire symbol on the side of the ship, name her, and have someone fill out some fake papers and we've got a legitimate ship. We'll hire ourselves out as a security firm. Mercenaries, if you would." He explained.

Alexander chuckled yet again. "Let me get this straight... we're going to hire ourselves out as mercs to pay the bills for us to become rebels? That's going to take awhile." Alexander stated with a smirk.

"I know. It will give us the time and resources we need to fund our charade. Listen, I'm not keen on going into hiding and living out the rest of my life with Imperial Intelligence operatives trying to track me down. Anybody want to back out of this?" Vheto asked, looking at each of the men and women gathered before him.

Alexander simply shrugged. "I may want to back out, but I'm not going to." He said with a nod of his head.

"Alright. Barrackman, do you and your men have any protests?" Vheto asked politely.

Barrackman and his five Rebels had been talking amongst themselves since Vheto had proposed the idea and they seemed to come to a conclusion. Barrackman turned to address Vheto. "We barely know you. You barely know us. But you entrusted me and my boys with a lot in a very short amount of time. I'd be honored if you allowed us to join you under the condition that I never have to lead men into battle. I'm just a ground-pounder." He stated with a light smirk.

Vheto chuckled. "Formal introductions should be made then. I am Vheto Baxter." He offered his hand to Barrackman.

"James Barrackman." Barrackman responded, shaking his offered hand. This gestured seemed to be enough for the two groups to come together and start their introductions.

"We're not exactly going to be friends starting off, but I do expect everybody to work as a team. All of my crew, ditch your standard issue gear and dress in whatever civilian gear you have. Barrackman, Kotu, Stone, you three come with me to my quarters. Alexander, setup bunks in the cargo area for our new found guests." The captain's quarters aboard the Imperial modified Gozanti-class were larger than the standard Gozanti-class quarters. It had enough room for a table and four chairs, alongside a bed and dresser.

Vheto led them from the lounge area to his bedroom. It was large enough to fit the four of them, a desk with a computer terminal, and a small collection of books and manuals. Just as the four entered, the door suddenly opened, revealing an LE-series droid. "Lieutenant Baxter, must I remind you to keep your duty log updated every day?" It questioned.

Vheto chuckled softly. "Barrackman, this is the LE-series droid LE-40. Lefto, we call him. He's my personal droid, programmed by yours truly." He stated, pride in his voice. He didn't program often, but Lefto was one of his finest works. "Sorry, Lefto, but in case you hadn't noticed I'm a little busy." The former Imperial said.

Lefto scoffed. "Busy? Of course you are, Lieutenant. You are always busy. The Empire requires you to update your duty log." The droid explained densely.

"Even if you're in the process of deserting?" Vheto countered with a raised eyebrow.

The droid paused and considered what Vheto had said. "Do you wish for me to purge programs related to the Empire?" He questioned his master.

The former Imperial nodded his head. "Purge all of the programs, but keep the files. Might come in handy in the future. Go help Alexander in the cargo area." Vheto ordered, dismissing the droid he had confiscated six months ago from a smuggler. He then turned to Barrackman, Stone, and Kotu. "We've got a couple things to work on. Barrackman, do you by chance have any slicers in your group?" He asked.

"Sergeant Gerald Jax is my expert computer slicer. He's a genius when it comes to digging through encrypted data." Barrackman responded.

"He'll be vital when we get to Nar Shaddaa. We'll have to come up with a simple ranking structure for our group. Speaking of which, what are we going to call our little group? If we're going to go through with our plan we'll need to become a completely legitimate appearing group." Vheto explained as he took off his officer's jacket and replaced it with a brown, waist-length overcoat from his footlocker.

Stone spoke up. "Baxter's Mercenaries?" He suggested.

Barrackman chuckled. "Baxter's Militia." He added.

Vheto wasn't too fond of either of those suggestions. Kotu spoke, however, as the other two started throwing out more suggestions. "Baxter's Irregulars." Kotu added, quietly compared to the other two.

Vheto stopped the other two mid-sentences. "What did you just say, Kotu?" He asked, turning to the clone of the Mandalorian Jango Fett.

"Baxter's Irregulars. We're not exactly going to be a certified force. We're an irregular force of Navy crew, a handful of Stormtroopers, and a group of Corellian rebels. It's a solid name and it describes the way we operate. The word irregulars generally implies a Guerrilla or ad hoc type force. It gives us a name and implies our purpose." The now former Imperial trooper explained to them.

Barrackman nodded his head. "Works for me. I'm not leading this shindig." He said with a wholehearted laugh.

"I couldn't care less." Stone added with a shrug.

Vheto smiled. "Well that settles that." He stated, opening his desk drawer and pulling out a bottle. "Now, we'll iron out the rest of the details over something to drink."


	2. Chapter 2

**_ Baxter's Irregulars: Errant Empire  
>Chapter 2: Nar Shaddaa<br>Nar Shaddaa  
><em>**

**_3rd Day of the 6th Month, 17 BBY_**

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><p>Vheto, Barrackman, Stone, and Kotu had spent the better part of the previous night ironing out the details about Baxter's Irregular. They had come up with a simple ranking system starting at private and going up to captain. Vheto was the captain of the group, Stone and Alexander were chosen as lieutenants, Kotu would be the group's sergeant-at-arms, Barrackman was a sergeant, and the rest of the mercenary crew were all corporals, lance corporals, and privates.<p>

Vheto, while he was in the ground, retained complete control of the mercenaries. Stone and Alexander were both appointed as lieutenants, but they would be on the ship. Stone was essentially Vheto's main executive officer and would be the one who remained on the ship during operations, while Alexander would remain as the group's lead pilot. Sergeant-At-Arms Kotu would be in charge of keeping discipline among the Irregulars, organizing the lower soldiers, and keeping track of the issuing of equipment. Corporal Jax became the group's resident computer slicer and technician armed with the simple E-11 blaster rifle previously utilized by the Imperial Stormtroopers stationed aboard Vheto's ship. Lance Corporal Raena Anjek, the only female rebel from Barrackman's force, was put in charge of demolitions and chose to carry a pair of dual blaster pistols. Lance Corporal Erik Carture, the former Imperial navigation officer-in-training, was assigned as a marksman due to his skills with the E-11s sniper rifle. Private Chaz Krieg, one of the Stormtroopers that had been under Kotu's command, was made the heavy weapons trooper and was armed with a T-21 light repeating blaster.

That made up Vheto's main assault force. Vheto would personally lead Kotu, Jax, Raena, Carture, and Chaz on the bigger jobs that required certain expertise. The rest of his group were relegated to support roles aboard the ship and they would go on minor missions not requiring certain specialties. Smaller squads entrusted with minor jobs would be led by a corporal or Sergeant Barrackman. Even though Barrackman had requested to not lead troopers again, Vheto had asked him if he was willing to lead smaller teams. Barrackman agreed as was put into a team leader spot.

The Irregulars' ship, the Gozanti-class cruiser _Freighter 221_, would be renamed and illegally added into the Imperial registry by Jax under the name _Hellbound _so the mercenaries could operate safely in Imperial space. Jax would insert false information and, on the registry, Vheto Baxter would be Ethan Baxter. With the number of Gozanti-class cruisers that were registered within the Imperial Registry, Vheto was hoping to go unnoticed.

Jax, being the Irregular's sole slicer, would also slice into as many bank accounts as he could and drain their funds. He would then transfer them, one credit at a time, into three separate accounts that only Vheto and the other Irregulars would have access to. On Nar Shaddaa, crimes similar to that happened often enough to be overlooked by the local authorities. With the major crime that plagued the ecumenopolis planet, slicers were one of the last things people worried about.**  
><strong>

While Jax was doing that, Vheto and the rest of the Irregulars would begin checking local bounties and scouting the cantinas that dotted the metropolis for employment. They would then all regroup at a predesignated spot and choose the best paying jobs or bounties that they found. Vheto was hoping it would be simple, but he knew things would be easier said than done.

Vheto was now beginning his final preparations for leaving the ship. They had landed several hours ago and many of his crew were already doing jobs off ship. He had, however, ordered them to change their outfits before leaving.. He didn't want any of his Irregulars to look like Imperials. Everybody had modified their gear personally. Vheto opted for his old grey officer pants, a pair of combat boots, a simple t-shirt, and a breastplate. His torso was covered in plastoid armor down to his elbows and he wore a pair of black gloves. He had painted the breastplate black and had painted, in white, claw marks across his right breast. Underneath the claw marks, he painted the word 'Irregulars'.

Kotu had chosen to keep most of his old Phase-II armor, but had abandoned the helmet and most of the armor pieces that went with his arms and his legs. He kept the kneepads. He chose to wear a pair of off-duty khaki cargo pants and a pair of black combat boots. The Fett clone chose to decal his armor with black markings and decal versus repainting the entirety of the armor. He also added the claw marks that were chosen to represent the Irregulars to his chest. He also painted Mandalorian crusader helmet on the breastplate.

Lance Corporal Carture and Private Chaz both wore off-duty clothes that they had in their footlockers. Carture wore a combat jumpsuit that was standard issue in just about any Imperial ship armory. It consisted of a light duralloy breastplate, duralloy groin armor, duralloy elbow and kneepads, duralloy wrist guards, and a blast helmet. Chaz wore the same armor, but opted against the blast helmet in favor of a brown knit cap. Since Chaz was the heavy weapons specialist, he carried the forty five pound power generator for his T-21 light repeating blaster on his back. This restricted his movement quite a bit.

Corporal Jax and Lance Corporal Raena both opted for a lighter load-out compared to Carture and Chaz. Jax wore a black mesh underlay t-shirt. He wore a pair of khaki pants. His boots were bloused with his pants. He wore a duralloy breastplate, duralloy shinguards, and duralloy elbowpads. On his right arm he wore a wrist link that had the ability to arm bombs and traps and could act as a personal comlink. Raena wore a female version of the duralloy breastplate over a long-sleeve mesh underlay shirt. She wore a pair of black pants that were tucked into a pair of brown boots with duralloy elbowpads and shinpads. She wore a bandolier of thermal detonators and other explosive devices.

Each of them had painted the claw mark that had become the symbol of the Irregulars somewhere on their personalized suits. They definitely fit the billet of ragtag mercenaries. Luckily, _Hellbound_, being an Imperial ship, had a fully armed armory on the ship. Quite a few E-11 blaster rifles and other weapons could be found in that room. The twenty eight mercenaries, however, had pillaged the armor section of the armory, leaving almost nothing.

Kotu, Barrackman, Vheto's droid Lefto, and most of the other crew were selling the weapons to an arms dealer that Barrackman had dealt with before. That was going to bring in thousands of credits. Each of the main Irregulars would be able to personalize their weapons using an allotment of credits given to them by Vheto. Once all the weapons were sold, Vheto would allow two thousand credits to each member of his main team. Kotu, Jax, Raena, Carture, and Chaz would all be able to pick out their own weapons.

Carture chose to stick with his E-11s sniper blaster, keeping his two thousand allotment. Chaz did the same, keeping his T-21 light repeating blaster and pocketing the two thousand he would be given. Kotu, Jax, and Raena, however, all would choose to replace their weapons.

As Vheto was sitting in his quarters, there was a knock at his door. "Enter." Vheto ordered, sitting at his desk. The door slid opened, revealing his Sergeant-At-Arms, Kotu.

The grizzled veteran entered, saluted, and moved over to Vheto's desk. "Sir, we've offloaded the weapons. We have received fifteen thousand three hundred and eighty three credits into an account created by Corporal Jax. Ten thousand of that has been split amongst myself and crewmen; Jax, Raena, Carture, and Chaz. Raena departed with Sergeant Barrackman's arms dealer to see his wares. Jax is beginning his slicing operation. Chaz and Carture remain outside the ship, awaiting your orders. With permission, I would like to depart to better arm myself." Kotu spoke quickly and to the point, informing Vheto of everything he needed to know.

"Thank you, Sergeant-At-Arms. Go ahead and get off ship. See about getting yourself a better weapon than those damn E-11 blaster rifles." Vheto stated, dismissing Kotu. Kotu simply nodded, saluted again, and left his quarters. With everything now in order, Vheto chose to leave his quarters and head towards the ship exit. He had his SE-14r blaster pistol in a holster on a utility belt that was worn around his waist. It wasn't a great weapon, but it hadn't let him down yet.

He stood at the top of the ship's ramp and found Chaz and Carture lounging around several empty crates that were being taken out of _Hellbound's_ cargo hold. Carture was sitting atop one of the crates, quietly maintaining his sniper blaster, while Chaz was pacing back and forth with his light repeating blaster cradled in his arms. The heavy weapons specialist was obviously eager to get moving. Vheto paused and inhaled the Nar Shaddaa air. It contained quite a stench and was obviously very low quality. "Beautiful Nar Shaddaa." He muttered under his breath before walking down the ramp. "Chaz, Carture." The Captain greeted them with a nod.

Carture stood and strapped his weapon to his back. Chaz stopped pacing and grunted a brisk greeting to him. "We heading out, sir?" Carture asked, his voice soft, but loud enough to be heard.

"Cap'n, tell me we're leaving and going somewhere. I'm dying to get as far away from this blasted ship as possible." Chaz added in his gruff tone of voice.

Vheto nodded his head. "Yeah, we're heading for one of this planet's lovely cantinas. I'm sure it will be an enlightening and delightful visit." The Captain stated, sarcasm practically dripping from his words. Carture smiled slightly, while Chaz gave a deep, loud laugh in response. "On me, gentlemen." Vheto ordered, leading the two towards the popular cantina that Barrackman had suggested, Spacer's Dream.

Vheto and the other two Irregulars were hoping to find an employer while they were in the cantina. It was right across from the docking area that Barrackman had been able to receive from one of his many contacts on the crime-filled planet. The trio entered the cantina and were immediately bombarded with cantina swing style music. Vheto heard Chaz groan. "I hate this kriffing music." The heavy weapons trooper muttered. Carture simply smirked, looking around the joint.

They were allowed to keep their weapons while they were in the bar. Nar Shaddaa, after all, was a dangerous place to be and most people had, at the very least, a small personal blaster that they kept with them. "Let's sit down and get something to drink." Vheto suggested, motioning towards three open bar stools. When they sat down, a server droid made its way to them and asked for their orders. "Three Ebla beers." The Captain ordered. The other two nodded, satisfied with his choice of alcohol.

Their drinks arrived and Vheto promptly opened his bottle and took several short swigs before setting it down. He then focused on the things people were saying. Most of the talk was drunken nonsense and even more of it was fruitless rumors or gossip, but some of it was helpful. Vheto overheard several dry-dock workers talking about their upper-management becoming worried about a gang of unruly thugs that had been demanding payment in exchange for protection. The Captain was able to steal a glance at their jumpsuits and saw that they worked at a dry-dock yard called Dasher Starship Repair Solutions.

Vheto activated his comlink which, unlike his comrades, was a earpiece that had a mouthpiece that came down to just in front of his mouth. All he had to do was press a button on the earpiece and he would be transmitting. The rest of his comrades had wrist comlinks attached to their wrist or wrist armor. He activated his comlink and spoke. "This is Vheto, we've got possible work. _Hellbound_, see if you can't contact a company called Dasher Starship Repair Solutions. Ask them if they're looking to resolve their Nar Shaddaa criminal problems." He said.

_"Will do, Captain."_ Stone's voice responded from aboard the _Hellbound_.

His Sergeant-At-Arms came over the comlink next. _"Captain, Raena and myself are fully armed. We've checked the local bounties and found several for a local gang's leader. Named Ryben Halcyon."_ Kotu reported.

_"Jax here. I got six thousand credits put into our new account, but I'm starting to get some looks from a couple local cops. I'm backing off. Moving back to Hellbound."_ The Irregular's slicer reported before signing off from his comlink.

Vheto simply nodded his head. "Chaz, Carture." He spoke. "We're about to head out." The Captain stated, pulling out his credit chit and payed for the three beers. He then grabbed his beer and stood from his bar stool, followed closely by the other two. He downed his beer on the way out and tossed it into a trash bin before exiting the cantina.

Just as the three stepped out of the cantina, Stone came back on the comlink. _"Captain, I got a hold of that Dasher company. They're asking to speak to you personally."_ He explained. _"I can put it onto a personal frequency for you."_ Stone offered.

"Go ahead." Vheto ordered, pausing outside of the cantina.

Suddenly, there was a moment of static and then, silence. _"Captain Baxter. My name is Dargus Taske, representative of Dasher Starship Repair Solutions, Nar Shaddaa office. I understand you've offered a resolution to our problem with a group of local thugs."_ Taske sounded as if he was tired and stressed.

Vheto smirked before speaking. "Mr. Taske, as you may have been told I am the proprietor of a group known as Baxter's Irregulars. I understand you have a problem and I am willing to offer a solution, just as you said. Myself and my team can remove this group of pests." He was satisfied with the wording of his offer. "For a fee, of course." Vheto added.

"_Mercenary vultures..."_ Taske muttered. _"How much would you want for dealing with these inconsiderate asses?"_ He questioned.

Vheto realized that he had no idea what a reasonable fee was. He was simply coming up with this as he went. "I prefer soldier-of-fortune vulture, personally." The Captain joked before returning to business. "Taking into account equipment, possible losses, time, and energy... Ten thousand credits is fair." Vheto decided upon the amount. He knew there would be loot to be taken from these gang members, too, if it came down to violence.

_"You must be joking." _Taske replied._ "I can hire twenty local thugs to take them out for that price." _He stated with a scoff.

"And what happens when those twenty thugs arm themselves and decide to do the same thing the group they took out was doing, Mr. Taske? Then you have a better armed group coming for protection money. Your company's money. You hire my Irregulars and I can guarantee that my solution will be swift and permanent. Ten thousand credits is more than fair. If anything, I'm cutting you a deal. I suggest you take it." Vheto responded, ready to cutoff the communication if Taske tried to counter negotiate. He knew his price was fair and that Taske was simply trying to cut costs.

Vheto heard muffled talking before Taske returned. _"So be it, Captain Baxter. Dasher Starship Repair Solutions has agreed to pay your fee. I will send a dossier of the group to your ship. Payment will be supplied once the task is done. I'll be in touch, Baxter."_ Taske suddenly ended the communication.

"Congratulations, boys." Vheto said with a heavy grin. "We've got our first paying contract." Vheto then activated his comlink to contact his entire team. "Everyone return to _Hellbound_ for briefing." He ordered before deactivating his comlink.

* * *

><p><em><strong>One Hour Later<strong>_

* * *

><p>Vheto had gathered his team in the armory of <em>Hellbound<em> to brief them about their upcoming operation. He had read the dossier that had been sent to his personal terminal by Dasher Starship Repair Solutions about the gang they would be facing. It turned out that the gang was led by no other than Ryben Halcyon. Not only would they get the ten thousand from Taske's company, but they would receive the five thousand credit bounty that had been placed on Halcyon by the local authorities. It was a two for one deal.

After reading the dossier, Vheto had also learned that Ryben and his gang of delinquents had headquartered themselves in an abandoned warehouse district with several large buildings that had been abandoned since before even the Clone Wars. Ryben had roughly thirty poorly armed and armored humans and aliens in his gang. They had taken to calling themselves the Nar Shaddaa Shooters.

Vheto laid out five surveillance photos supplied by Taske and his company on a table in the ship's armory. Two of them were photos taken from flying above the compound and the other three were various photos taken from different angles, showing several lightly armed thugs. "This is our first job, gentlemen." He paused. "And lady." He added, nodding to Raena who simply smirked in response. "A local gang of thugs calling themselves the Nar Shaddaa Shooters, lame ass name, has taken it upon themselves to bother a major starship repair company for protection money. We're going to supply them with a solution." The Captain explained, grinning. "This is their base of operations." He said, motioning to the two pictures of the warehouse area. "They're held up in several abandoned warehouses and stores. We're going to use the Hellbound to insert right here." Vheto said, pointing to an area in one of the pictures that was large enough to fit the Gozanti-class cruiser.

Kotu quickly interjected. "Skids down or are we hopping off ship?" The Sergeant-At-Arms questioned.

"Negative on skids down. We'll hover several feet off the ground and disembark. We'll secure a perimeter quickly and then begin sweeping and clearing the surrounding buildings. Carture, however, will not be apart of the landing team. We'll drop you off on top of a building roughly a kilometer away from the site. They have sentries on the roofs. Those bastards will be your priority." Vheto explained to the Irregular's main marksman.

Carture nodded his head as he checked the surveillance photos. "Understood." He stated simply, eyes never leaving the photos.

Vheto laid another photo down on the table. "This is the gang's leader. Nasty guy by the name of Ryben Halcyon. According to his bounty, he's wanted for robbing a docked transport and murdering the entire crew. We take him out, that's a nice five thousand credit bonus for the bounty placed on him by the local authorities." He explained. "He's a high priority. We take him and his crew out, that's an easy fifteen thousand credit day. Any questions?" He asked, looking up at this team.

"Rules of engagement?" Raena asked, while toying with her new weapons. She had purchased two blasters from Barrackman's arms dealer. She now wielded a Nabooian crafted S-5 heavy blaster pistol as her choice weapon and a DL-18 blaster pistol as her backup blaster.

"I'm assuming it moves, we kill it." Kotu stated with a toothy grin, hefting his newly purchased rifle over his shoulder. It was a DLT-19 heavy blaster rifle. It was a large blaster designed with power and range in mind. It bore a small resemblance to the E-11s sniper blaster that Carture wielded. It was powerful enough to shoot down swoops or even light airspeeders. Vheto couldn't fathom what it did to bare flesh.

Vheto nodded his head. "Like Kotu said; it moves, it dies. Anything else?" He glanced up at his team. Everybody looked as if they knew their jobs and most of them seemed eager to get a move on. Vheto activated his comlink and spoke. "Stone, get _Hellbound_ in the air. Let's get this party started." He stated.

Private Chaz smiled wide. "Hell yeah! Let's get some!" He shouted, voice filled with excitement.

Vheto smiled slightly at Chaz's excitement. His team seemed optimistic, but the Captain couldn't say he was exactly confident with their odds. He had considered bringing several more of his crew, but eventually decided that it would be easier with a smaller strike team. Just as he was considering this, _Hellbound_ lurched upwards as its thrusters engaged and brought the Gozanti-class cruiser off the ground. "Arm up and meet at the exit ramp." Vheto ordered his team, knowing that they'd be at their drop off point shortly. Carture would be the first to disembark while the rest had the honor of storming the enemy position head on.

It only took a few brief minutes before the ship was at Carture's position. The sniper exited Hellbound and took up his position on top of a twenty story building, deploying his blaster's bi-pod and sighting in the scope for the one thousand meter shots he would be taken. _"Carture good to go."_ Vheto heard him speak over the comlink.

The Captain suddenly felt the ship decelerating and knew it would be only a few moments before they were in the fray of combat. "Get ready!" He shouted to his team as they were standing, awaiting the ramp to go down. The ship came to a sudden halt and Stone abruptly opened the ramp, revealing Hellbound to already be several feet off the ground of their objective. Blaster shots were already landing. "Let's go!" Vheto shouted, leading the charge out of the ship. He had chosen to equip himself with the older DC-15S blaster carbine for this operation. Even though they were older weapons, many DC-15S blaster carbines had been put into the armories of second class Imperial ships and outposts.

Vheto saw two gang members armed with rudimentary and cheap blaster carbines taking aim at his team. He quickly dropped to his knee, took aim, and fired twice in the time it took them to fire one shot each. They both fell, incapacitated or dead from the shots fired by Vheto. He had no time, however, to think about them as he was under fire from several others. He stood up and bolted for a pile of rubble to use as cover.

The rest of the Irregulars seemed to have found cover. Kotu and Jax were behind a different pile of rubble and Raena and Chaz were behind a pillar. Chaz was laying down a lot of fire on the hostile gang, forcing them to retreat or find cover. Several of them were mowed down in the open. _"Carture here."_ Vheto's comlink came to life. _"Five-"_ There was a pause and a blaster shot could be heard after a second of silence. _"Make that six hostiles down."_ He reported.

"Kotu, Chaz, you're with me!" Vheto spoke over his comlink as several stray blaster shots fired from the now desperate gangsters landed around him. "Jax, you and Raena secure this immediate area." He ordered. All of them acknowledged their orders and moved to accomplish them. Kotu and Chaz both took turns bounding to Vheto's position while Jax and Raena both supplied them with cover fire from their respective weapons.

Chaz made it to Vheto first and setup his T-21 light repeating blaster so it could fire on the few remaining thugs that were in this compound. At least three were still taking potshots from the second story of the three story warehouse. Carture assured that none of the gangsters on the roof would fire down onto the assault force. Just as Vheto was about to move, a group of gang members appeared on the second story of the building behind them. They now had the ability to fire onto Vheto and his team while they were exposed. "Move!" Vheto shouted, pointing to the entrance of one of the surrounding warehouses.

Jax and Raena, however, retreated back into a warehouse on the other side of the compound. "Jax, what's your status?" Vheto asked the ranking member of the two over his comlink.

_"We're fine. Raena took one to the shin, but her armor caught most of the damage. There's no other way out of here besides the main entrance, but we can hole up and take defensive positions. We'll hold this compound while you continue pushing forward."_ Jax explained.

"Copy that. Good luck." Vheto stated, ending the communication. While he was ending the communication, several blaster shots whizzed past him and the other, forcing them all to dive for various cover.

Kotu leaned out from his cover and fired four consecutive shots from his heavy DLT-19. "Two down." The Sergeant-At-Arms reported. "Two remaining." He added while reloading his energy pack. Suddenly, the shots stopped.

Vheto heard hushed whispering, but didn't exactly know who was speaking to whom. "So!" A gruff voice shouted from across the way. "Another group of bounty hunters coming to claim my head?" The voice said, followed by a deep chuckle. Vheto could only assume that this was Ryben Halcyon speaking to him.

"You could say that!" Vheto responded, curious as to why Ryben was speaking to them.

"I have a different proposition!"

Vheto stifled a laugh. "Yeah? What's that?" He questioned, preparing to lean out and take a shot at the overconfident gang leader.

Suddenly, a thermal detonator landed near the three. "Die!" Ryben shouted, followed by the explosion of the detonator. Vheto felt himself thrown off his feet after the explosion and he heard the world go silent. Slowly, things darkened on him before his world went black and he was unconscious.


	3. Chapter 3

**_ Baxter's Irregulars: Errant Empire  
>Chapter 3: <em>****_Ryben Halcyon  
>Nar Shaddaa<br>_**

**_3rd Day of the 6th Month, 17 BBY_**

* * *

><p>Vheto could hear a loud ringing noise in his ears as his world slowly came back to him. The first thing he felt, however, was pain. He groaned as a bright light hit his eyes, forcing him to shut them back and let them readjust to the light. The Captain heard blaster shots and, when his eyes finally adjusted, could see that the area around him had been ravaged by an explosive of some sort.<strong><em><br>_**

Then, everything came back to him. Halcyon speaking to them, the thermal detonator landing next to him, the explosion followed by him being knocked off of his feet and rendered unconscious. Vheto managed to push himself up and to his feet. He looked down to check himself. The Captain's arms and legs had been hit by the resulting explosion of the thermal detonator, his armor was scorched, and he could feel that his face was also affected in someway, but he was alive. And he could still use a blaster.

Vheto quickly looked around him and noticed that his DC-15S carbine laid discarded next to him. It had survived the explosion, luckily. Vheto picked up his weapon and stumbled back into the fight. Kotu and Chaz looked to be unharmed by the explosion. "Thought we'd lost you, sir!" Kotu exclaimed in surprise over the sounds of the firefight they were in with Halcyon and his thugs.

"Almost did!" Vheto managed to rasp out, leaning from his cover to fire several shots at Halcyon's goons. He took out one with a well placed shot to the thug's torso.

Suddenly, Vheto's comlink came to life, indicating that it was still working despite everything that had happened already. _"Jax here, boss! Things are getting heavy at the LZ! We're holding them at bay, but I think a few of them slipped through! Watch your backs!"_ The Irregular's main slicer reported, blaster fire heard in the background of the transmission.

Vheto turned to Chaz and his Sergeant-At-Arms. "Watch behind you!" He shouted over the blaster fire. "We've got possible incoming!" The Captain added, leaning out to fire several more sporadic shots at their assailants. None of them hit their intended targets, but they at least kept the thugs in cover. Blaster shots hit the walls around him. They were coming from behind them. Jax had been right, several gangsters had made it through Raena and him and they were now moving to eliminate Vheto, Kotu, and Chaz.

Before Vheto could fire, Chaz turned around and fired his T-21 repeating blaster from the hip, spraying down the three that had managed to flank them. "Kriff you!" Chaz shouted, almost gleefully, before turning back around and firing at Halcyon's gangsters. He managed to take one more down before he was driven back into cover.

They had taken out quite a few of the thugs and Vheto figured that they wouldn't have many more to take out. His injuries hurt, but he did his best to ignore them for the time being. He had more important things to focus on. He leaned out of cover to get a look at how many were left. The Captain saw two gangsters and one well armored man that Vheto figured was Ryben Halcyon. He was forced back into cover when a blaster bolt fire from Halcyon hit the pillar he was behind. "Kotu!" He shouted over the fire. "Move up to that pile of rubble and take out the thug on the left side. Chaz, cover him!" Vheto ordered, before leaning out of cover and firing to keep the thugs pinned down.

Chaz did the same. He even managed to hit one of the two remaining thugs, bringing the man off of his feet and onto the ground, dead. Kotu sprinted forward and slid to a halt in front of a rubble pile just before Ryben managed to get his sights on him. Ryben fired two shots, but both of them missed their intended target. In the process, however, he had exposed himself just enough for Vheto to get a shot off at him. The blaster shot hit Halcyon in his chest, throwing the man off his feet and onto the ground. The gang leader didn't stand to his feet.

Kotu quickly took down the final thug with a well placed shot that hit the thug in the head. Vheto activated his comlink. "Jax, how are you looking back there?" He questioned the Corporal.

_"All's good, boss. Raena and me just finished mopping up."_ Jax responded.

_"More like I finished mopping up. He hid behind a pillar."_ Raena muttered into her own comlink, starting an argument between the two that Vheto quickly put to a stop by ending his transmission.

He then turned to Chaz and Kotu. "Kotu, get _Hellbound_ here with a crew ready to start grabbing anything of value. Chaz, go make sure the LZ is secure and good to go." Vheto ordered before walking towards Halcyon's body. All the Captain needed to do was get several pictures of the body as proof. He made it to the man and leaned down to check when suddenly, Halcyon's eyes opened and he reached up to grab Vheto. Vheto quickly hit the gangster with the stock of his DC-15S, rendering him unconscious, yet again. He activated his comlink. "We've got a live one, Irregulars." He stated with a smile. Alive, Halcyon would catch quite a price. The bounty had only indicated the price for his death. Never the price for capturing him alive.

The Captain heard _Hellbound_ coming in. It was hard not to notice a ship of that size landing just a few hundred feet away from him. Vheto hefted the heavy Ryben up off of the ground, threw him over his shoulder, and moved towards the landing zone. Halcyon was heavy, but thanks to both the Republic and Imperial training Vheto had gone through it wasn't too difficult to lift him over his shoulders.

He carried the crime boss Ryben Halcyon all the way back to the landing zone, handing him off to Kotu when he finally arrived. Kotu then took Halcyon to where Barrackman and his team had previously been held in the cargo hold of_ Hellbound_. Jax and Chaz both accompanied Kotu, their blasters at the ready. As they went up the loading ramp, however, Lieutenant Stone came down. He was dressed in a pair of cargo pants and a simple shirt. "Captain, I've contacted Dasher Repair Solutions. They are tremendously grateful and have even gone so far as to include a bonus in addition to our ten thousand credits, much to the dismay of Mr. Taske. Twelve thousand credits have been transferred to our account. I've also contacted the local Nar Shaddaa authorities and they said they'll have a team waiting at our docking bay to take Ryben Halcyon into custody with our credits. In addition to the five thousand credits they were offering, they're adding two thousand more for capturing the sad son-of-a-rancor alive." Stone explained with his ever-present grin. "Our crew will be done scavenging blasters, ammo, and credits from this place in a half hour tops." Stone suddenly noticed Vheto's injuries and the grin left his face. "You should probably see Doctor Lynda." He said, referring to the on-ship doctor. "Oh yeah, we picked up Carture on the way over." Stone added.

"Right. How's Lieutenant Alexander and his flyboys?" Vheto questioned. Alexander and the other three pilots had all been drifting around in space since _Hellbound_ arrived at Nar Shaddaa. Four Alpha-3 Nimbus-class V-Wing starfighters drew attention, especially since the current main user was the Empire. And since there was an Imperial bounty placed on a Gozanti-class cruiser called _Freighter 221_ with four V-Wing starfighters fitting the description of _Hellbound_ and her escorts, Vheto wanted to minimize his chances of being caught.

Stone smirked. "To say he's upset would be an understatement, but they're doing alright. They've landed on one of the eighteen moons of the gas giant Kiskua and are awaiting pickup when we're ready to leave system." The Lieutenant explained, following Vheto as he boarded Hellbound.

"Inform Alexander that we'll be leaving Nar Shaddaa in just a few hours and to be prepared for pickup." Vheto ordered, dismissing Stone with a wave of his hand. Stone offered a salute, which Vheto returned, before jogging off to the bridge. The Captain activated his comlink and switched it over to where any of the Irregulars that had comlinks could hear him. "We're moving out as soon as all this gear is stowed away. Let's get a move on." He stated, deactivating the comlink after receiving a string of acknowledgements.

"Sir." Vheto turned around and saw Kotu standing before him. "I've got two crew guarding Halcyon's cell. You want the gear that the boys are bringing aboard put in the armory?" He questioned.

The Captain nodded. "That'll be fine, Sergeant-At-Arms. Let's get it done." Vheto said with a nod of his head before he left to find Barrackman. It only took him a minute of walking. He found the former rebel commander turned mercenary Sergeant organizing things in the armory.

"Evening, Captain." Barrackman stated, greeting his new-found commanding officer. "Needing something?" He asked Vheto with a raised brow.

"Need you to inform that arms dealer that we've got another shipment of miscellaneous weapons coming in." Vheto paused and turned to Kotu who had followed him to the armory. "We got a count on how many blasters we've got?" He asked the Fett clone.

Kotu nodded his head. "Yes, sir. We've got nineteen blaster rifles, eight blaster carbines, and six blaster pistols. All of them various qualities and makes. Most of them are in decent enough condition." The Sergeant-At-Arms explained.

Vheto paused to do some quick mental math. "Let's call it an even two thousand credits for the bunch. Tell him the number of each type of blaster." He ordered. Barrackman nodded and went to do his job, while Kotu and Vheto both left the armory and headed for the bridge of the ship. "We're coming out of this whole ordeal twenty two thousand credits richer. In addition to the five thousand credits from when we cleaned out the armory and the six thousand that Jax sliced for us, that's thirty three thousand plus credits, Kotu. For a day's work that's a hell of a catch." Vheto exclaimed happily.

Kotu grunted. "As long as we get to payback the Empire soon, I'm happy." The Fett clone stated simply. "I served both the Republic and the Empire loyally for five long years and what did they do?" The Sergeant-At-Arms asked rhetorically. "They tried to destroy the ship I was on and the friends I've made." He ranted angrily.

"The sooner we can hit the Empire, the better." Vheto added simply as they entered the bridge. It was staffed by a crew of four specialized crewmen and ten miscellaneous crewmen who helped operate stations. The weapons were all controlled by individual gunners, so there was no weapons station. A tactical officer and two others helped plan and coordinate attacks. A lead engineer and two assistants monitored the status of _Hellbound's_ systems. A navigation officer plotted the ship's course and four other crew helped navigate the ship. And, finally, a communications officer with two assistants coordinated outbound and inbound communications and in-ship communications.

Stone turned to them as they entered the bridge. "Everyone's good to go, sir." He said to Vheto with a nod.

"Alright. Get us back to the docking bay. Kotu, go get our prisoner ready for release." Vheto ordered his Sergeant-At-Arms who nodded and walked out of the bridge and towards the cargo hold where Ryben was currently at. Hellbound was in the air in just a few second and after a few minutes of travel, they arrived at their docking bay. The ship landed and Vheto headed towards the exit. Kotu, Chaz, Raena, Carture, and Jax all stood around the now conscious Ryben Halcyon. "You're the prick who threw the thermal detonator?" Vheto asked.

Before Halcyon could respond, Vheto delivered a swift hit to the man's gut with his DC-15S blaster. "Get this scum off my ship." He ordered the five. Kotu led the now coughing Halcyon off of the ship. Once the transaction with the local authorities was done and the Irregulars had been paid for the capture of Ryben Halcyon, Vheto took the time he had to visit Doctor Lynda as Stone had suggested. After he was done getting patched up, he'd need to decide something crucial.

The Irregulars' next move.


	4. Chapter 4

**_ Baxter's Irregulars: Errant Empire  
>Chapter 4: <em>****_The Facility Part 1  
>Tatooine Desert<br>_**

**_13th Day of the 6th Month, 17 BBY_**

* * *

><p>It had been eleven days since Baxter and his crew had been betrayed by the Empire they served and ten days since they had made over thirty three thousand credits on Nar Shaddaa. They had been hopping from system to system, looking for a port with work. The two planets that the Irregulars visited were Ibanjji and Harloen, which were both Outer Rim planets.<p>

Two days after Nar Shaddaa, they visited Ibanjji. On planet, they were contacted by a minor government official to rescue his daughter from a gang that had chosen to kidnap her in broad daylight. The official never told Baxter how he had heard of the Irregulars. That operation went off without a hitch and earned the Irregulars six thousand easy credits. They left immediately after loading up food rations and refilling _Hellbound's_ fresh water tanks. Then, four days after that, came the visit to Harloen, the more exciting of the two visits. Baxter had chosen to stop there because of the high crime rates.

Harloen was said to be the swoop racing capital of the Outer Rim and Baxter thought for sure that the Irregulars could find work there. After two days of waiting and no paying work, some of the crew got antsy. Including Private Chaz Krieg, the heavy weapons specialist. Chaz had been at one of the many local cantinas in Harloen's capital city and accidentally had a drink spilled on him. Chaz, being slightly intoxicated, through a blind punch... right into the jaw of an Imperial Army lieutenant. Jax and Raena, who were both with Chaz at the time, quickly jumped in against the lieutenant and his troopers, escalating the fight further.

One of the troopers drew a blaster and Raena quickly put him down with her own. Needless to say, _Hellbound_ was quickly chased away from the planet with an Imperial Tartan-class patrol corvette on their tail. Now, just two days after that incident, the motley crew found themselves on the backwater desert planet of Tatooine. Baxter was hoping to lay low after yet again gaining Imperial attention.

Tatooine did have an Imperial presence, but it was a small and insignificant garrison of poorly armed and trained Stormtroopers. In system, the Empire had two patrol crafts and a small contingent of Tie Fighters. Once a month, an older Star Destroyer, usually a Clone War era Venator-class, would enter the system and resupply the patrol craft and the troops on the ground.

Otherwise, Tatooine was nothing but a hive of criminal activity and poor farmers who were simply attempting to make a living. The reason it interested Baxter, besides the lesser Imperial presence, was its criminal activity. From what he knew a Hutt ran his criminal empire from somewhere on the planet and many smugglers, bounty hunters, and other people that the galaxy generally viewed as lowlifes. Baxter doubted it'd be very long before the Irregulars would find work. All they'd have to do was walk around for awhile with their armor and weapons.

Instead of landing directly in one of Mos Eisley's starports, Baxter chose to land _Hellbound_ out in the desert and ride the six speeders that they had picked up on Ibanjji. They had purchased two FC-20 speeder bikes, three 74-Z speeder bikes (which heavily resembled the FC-20 speeder bikes), and a single ST-101 repulsortruck to carry cargo. Baxter had haggled the merchant down to nine thousand credits for the six used speeders, which was a great deal for him. The bikes and the truck were all in decent shape. What worked even better was that they fit right into _Hellbound's_ cargo hold.

Baxter chose to drive the ST-101 repulsortruck while the rest of his team drove the five speeder bikes. They made the twenty kilometer trip to Mos Eisley in just over twenty minutes. The ST-101 repulortruck's max speed was, unfortunately, only seventy five kilometers per hour. When they reached the outskirts, they dismounted to speak to one another. "Jax, Raena." Baxter turned to those two. "Load your speeders into the truck and head to the market to pickup some supplies. Here's a list from Doctor Lynda and one from me." He said, subconsciously rubbing the the scarred area of his face when he mentioned Lynda.

After the fight on Nar Shaddaa and the thermal detonator incident, Baxter had gained many scars on his arms and several burn marks and a long scar on the right side of his jawline running all the way up to the base of his skull. Some of his short jet-black hair had been singed off in the resulting explosion, but not enough to be noticeable. Bacta had healed most of his wounds very quickly, but the scars would remain. "Got it, boss man." Jax said, moving to load his 74-Z speeder into the back of the truck.

Raena moved to do the same with her FC-20. "Kotu, Chaz, Carture, you guys are with me. Find a place to park your speeders and we'll head into town. See if we can't find some paying work. Maybe something that will let us crack some skulls. I've been itching for a real firefight again." Baxter said with a sadistic smirk which Chaz shared. Carture simply remained silent, pulling out his E-11s sniper to make sure everything on it was good to go in case they did get involved in a fight.

"Why is it me and Jax always get sent to do the menial stuff?" Raena asked, making a mock pouty face at Baxter. Even though the rebels and Baxter's crew had only known each other for eleven days, they had gotten along tremendously well and had quickly learned to place their trust in one another.

"Cause you two are the ones I trust with tasks requiring any form of intelligence." Baxter responded jokingly. "No offense." He said to the other three. Kotu shook his head, Chaz chuckled, and Carture, like usual, remained silent. The marksman was the most serious of the crew and was always ready for combat. Baxter figured that the former Imperial officer was a natural born killer. "Get a move on. I want to be back aboard Hellbound by sundown with some work. Let's get it done." He stated.

Jax and Raena loaded into the truck and headed towards the marketplace of the cobbled together city. Kotu, Chaz, and Carture moved to park their speeders in an old abandoned garage nearby. It was lucky they had stumbled upon it. They further secured their speeders by locking them to the wall of the garage with simple durasteel chain locks.

After that was over, they continued into the popular spacer city. Now that Baxter actually viewed the city in person, he doubted anybody could afford to hire a group of mercenaries to solve any problems. It seemed like this was going to be nothing more that a quick stop. That was, until, an Imperial Sandtrooper was thrown from an alleyway into the side of a building the four Irregulars were walking towards. "Kriff!" Chaz shouted, visibly surprised.

Baxter and the others pulled their weapons, aiming them towards the alley just as another Sandtrooper came flying out and hit the wall, his neck breaking upon impact. Suddenly, a six foot five humanoid figure with a very dark complexion, bony ridges above its gray eyes, and a mouth of tiny, pointed teeth. It was dressed in a simple robe that hung only down to his shins, had short wiry black hair, and was wielding an RT-97C blaster rifle it had recovered from one of the Sandtroopers. The being looked like it weighed almost twice as much as Baxter did. "Woah there, big guy." Baxter stated, raising his SE-14r blaster pistol when the humanoid raised its blaster at them.

"Friend or foe?" He questioned simply, voiced filled with a mixture of anger, suspicion, and fear.

"Considering I'm no friend of the Empire and you just killed two Sandtroopers by throwing them against a wall, I'm going to go with friend on this one." Baxter explained, slowly holstering his blaster pistol.

The male humanoid seemed satisfied with that answer and lowered his own blaster. "Good choice. I am Krish." He stated, pounding his chest with his fist in what Baxter could only assume was a normality in his species.

"Odd name." Kotu said, finally lowering his DLT-19 heavy blaster rifle.

"It is my species, human. I have no name."

Baxter raised a brow at that response. "How can you have no name? I'm not familiar with the Krish, but I'm assuming you have names." The Captain said, confusion in his voice.

The Krish grunted. "I am a clone. I was given no name. I was assigned a number that I did not bother remembering. I was bred for war and the overseers chose a bad species to use. My fellow clones and I escaped, but we've been hunted down by these Imperials you speak of for the last month. I am all that remains of twenty Krish warriors." He explained.

"We need to help him." Kotu stated bluntly. Baxter somehow figured that the Fett clone would say that. Kotu was the only one who knew what it was like to lose his brothers and have to live with seeing them all die.

Baxter nodded his head. "If he wants our help, that is. Do you want our help?" The Captain asked.

The Krish paused and seemed to consider his options. He looked over Baxter, Kotu, Carture, and Chaz one by one before nodding his head in what Baxter could only assume was approval. "So be it, human. You have not lied about being enemies of my enemies. I will trust you, but first I must ask a favor." He said, pacing back and forth on the narrow sand path.

"What would that be?" Baxter questioned with a raised brow.

"You must destroy the facility I was bred at. Our enemies will breed more of my kind, or perhaps another species, and use them in their war machine as inexpensive fodder for their front lines. If we destroy the research and the facility, their progress will be lost. Perhaps it will just be a setback, but I must do it for the sake of honor." The Krish explained.

Baxter sighed as he considered this. Carture, however, chose to break the silence. "We've wanted to hit the Empire since we started out. We may not be ready, but if we continue to delay we will never be ready. This could be a simple op. Smash and grab or a pure demolitions run. Who knows what we could find of value at this facility?" The marksman explained, swaying Baxter's opinion slightly.

"He's got a point, sir. Plus, we destroy this facility and that's less troops for the Empire." Kotu added while he strapped his blaster to his back.

Baxter turned to Chaz in case the heavy weapons specialist had anything to add. "I'm just here to kill." Chaz stated as he cleaned sand out of his T-21 repeating blaster.

The Captain sighed again before reluctantly nodding his head. "Alright, Krish. We'll destroy the facility, but first thing's first. You need a name." Baxter said, crossing his arms across his chest.

The Krish looked as if he was smiling. "My brothers came to know me as Ember for some reason or another. It will work as a designation. I am glad to serve you, Captain." Suddenly, Ember fell to on knee and offered his rifle up to Baxter. "My blaster and myself are now in your employment. Your enemies are enemies. Your allies are my allies. Your honor is my honor. I serve you." Ember said before standing back up and strapping his RT-97C to his back.

Baxter figured what the Krish had just done was a huge honor, but not knowing what to do he simply offered his hand for a handshake. "Welcome to Baxter's Irregulars. I'm Captain Baxter." He stated, formally introducing himself.

"If you'll excuse my bluntness, Captain, but if we could leave these streets it would more than likely be for the best. The enemy is still hunting me and I am very identifiable, even by these simpletons." Ember said spitefully, motioning to the two dead Sandtroopers when he said simpletons.

"Agreed." Baxter stated before activating his comlink. "Jax, kriff the supplies. Bring the truck back to where we hid the speeders. We've got a new friend to get out of town and an operation to plan for." He explained to his technical specialist.

There was a pause before the Corporal replied. _"Copy that, boss. We're on our way."_ He stated, confusion in his voice, before ending the comlink transmission.

"Let's get back to the ship." Baxter stated before heading towards where they hid their speeders.

Roughly half-an-hour later, the team of seven were back aboard _Hellbound_. Most of the crew were shocked to see Ember for the first time, especially considering he was dressed in nothing but a flimsy and torn set of robes. After Baxter explained the situation, however, most of them were accepting to the huge Krish almost immediately.

Baxter's first priority was getting Ember dressed and familiarized with the crew. He managed to scrounge up a duralloy breastplate and a pair of khaki cargo pants that fit the Krish. The Captain had found a pair of black combat boots that fit Ember. Ember quickly customized his armor, adding a leather double bandolier that sported two large shoulderpads. The Krish was also given a wrist-mounted comlink.

Ember chose to keep his RT-97C, but he also grabbed one of the many short vibroblades that _Hellbound's_ armory held as his secondary weapon. "We need to know where this facility is, Ember." Baxter stated, watching as Ember equipped his gear.

"I can show you. If we leave soon, we shall be there before nightfall. Then, we can destroy our enemies." Ember stated coldly as he loaded his RT-97C heavy blaster rifle with a fresh magazine.

Baxter nodded. "So be it. Kotu, bring everyone in." The Captain ordered. The Fett clone had been standing outside of the armory, waiting to be given orders by Baxter. It only took a few minutes before everybody in his assault team, plus the pilot Alexander, were in the armory. "We've got a job. It's not one we're going to make a lot off of, but if we do it right this will be our first strike against the Empire." That got everybody's attention. "There's an Imperial facility on this planet that's attempting to find a suitable species to clone as front-line soldiers. Needless to say, our new friend Ember here is one of those clones. And he is not happy. He's offered to lead us to this facility and assist in ransacking it to ensure the Empire doesn't get their hands on an endless supply of cannon fodder." He explained.

"Are me and my pilots actually going to be doing something on this run?" Alexander questioned.

"Believe it or not, yes, but not in the way you might be thinking. We can't afford to use the V-Wings. They draw too much attention, so the next chance I get I'm offloading them on a black market." Alexander moved to protest, but Baxter quickly silenced him. "That doesn't mean, however, we can't also capture more Imperial equipment and sell it. I need your pilots to retrieve any craft we find at this facility and bring it back here. Once we sell all of that, we should be able to afford a couple inconspicuous fighters from the open market." The Captain explained, satisfying Alexander.

Ember seemed to grunt. "No offense, sir, but may we please continue with the plan?" He asked Baxter who nodded in response.

"Right. From what Ember tells me, the facility is mainly underground, but it does have an outside compound. Apparently it's covered up as an Imperial refueling facility which is why I expect there to be some craft for us to steal. They're attempting to avoid attention so there shouldn't be much in the way of defenses. Sandtroopers and maybe a light vehicle or two." This caused Raena to smile and grab a Clone Wars era RPS-6 rocket launcher from one of the armory's shelves. "Atta girl, Raena." Baxter smirked as she grabbed several rockets and put them in a bag on her back. "We'll attack the facility after the suns go down. Using the cover of night; Kotu and myself will sneak to the outer wall of the compound. We'll cause a diversion there which will draw the guards away from the main entrance. Ember, Chaz, and Jax will then sprint to the door and open it. Meanwhile, Raena and Carture will be several hundred meters away. Raena, you'll have to take out the vehicle from there, but be careful with your shots. There's a lot of fuel down there. And, of course, Carture you'll take out any you can." He explained.

"What about us flyboys?" Alexander questioned.

Baxter crossed his arms as he spoke. "You'll be with Carture and Raena. Once we clear the compound I'll radio the all clear and you guys can move down and start loading up whatever ships are there with anything of value. Meanwhile, Chaz, Ember, Kotu, Jax, and I will be in the underground facility. We'll clear it out and grab anything useful or expensive, erase any cloning data we find, bring Raena in, and have her blast the place sky high, just for good measure. Easy as pie." The mercenary Captain explained, clapping his hands together as he finished the plan.

Everyone was silent until Ember grunted, yet again, and nodded his head. "It is sufficient. Not as easy as you may think, but it is a sound enough plan to succeed. The Empire is not clever when it comes to tactics and response to fire. They will fall." He said, baring his teeth in what could only be a Krish smile.

"I've heard worse plans from better leaders." Kotu added before moving to grab his supplies, followed closely by the rest of the team. Most of them were just happy to have another job. Most of them had known nothing but the Empire. They had never tasted combat, but now they loved it. They lived for it. As long as they were deserving, Baxter felt as if he was doing more good than he ever would have done with his life in the Imperial fleet. He probably would have eventually defected to a rebel group, but now he was running, essentially, his own.

He didn't have time to think about that. Right now was the time for preparation.


	5. Chapter 5

**_ Baxter's Irregulars: Errant Empire  
>Chapter 5: <em>****_The Facility Part 2  
>Tatooine Desert<br>_**

**_13th Day of the 6th Month, 17 BBY_**

* * *

><p>Tatooine's two suns had just fallen below the horizon line and Baxter's Irregulars were all in place, ready to start the assault on a secret Imperial cloning facility. The facility was placed in a wide gorge, leaving it exposed to sniper fire from the overlooking sand dunes, something Baxter's best marksman would soon be exploiting to his advantage.<p>

When the Irregulars had arrived, just half an hour ago, Baxter had discovered that this fake fueling facility was more heavily guarded than Ember had made it out to be. At least thirty Imperial Army troopers were inside the facility. Floodlights lit up the area immediately surrounding the compound, ten of thirty Army troopers were patrolling atop the four walls that surrounded the compound. Inside were the additional twenty Army troopers and, the worst thing Baxter could have expected, an All Terrain Scout Transport, or AT-ST, was also apart of the garrison.**_  
><em>**

In addition to all of that, there was what looked to be a highly modified Imperial CR90 Corellian designed corvette currently within the base. That had made the deal all the more sweeter for Baxter and his Irregulars. If they played their cards right and all went according to plan, they'd have a new starship under their command, bringing them that much closer to their ultimate goal of open rebellion.

For now, however, Baxter had no time to think about that. It wasn't easy, but Kotu and Baxter had both managed to sneak to the outer wall without being detected. Baxter now had to execute his diversion. "This is really stupid." The Captain muttered.

The Sergeant-At-Arms nodded his head in agreement. "I concur, sir. Now can we get this over with?" Kotu questioned, his voice unwavering.

Baxter sighed and stepped out of cover, his DC-15S carbine pointed upwards. He took a moment to take aim and squeezed off two shots, one of which taking down an unsuspecting Army trooper. This threw the base, and the rest of the Irregulars, into action. It was only a few moments after Baxter had taken his first shot when he heard Raena fire the RPS-6 rocket launcher from atop the canyon wall, taking down the AT-ST and four surrounding troopers with one well placed shot.

The fuel and other assets were not damaged by the resulting explosion and the AT-ST crumbled to the desert ground in flames. Baxter and Kotu continued shooting at the troopers atop the walls, taking down three more. _"Jax here, boss. Main entrance is breached. Big guy and Chaz have charged in. They're slaughtering these guys!"_ The Irregular's slicer reported over Baxter's comlink.

Baxter looked over to Kotu. "Let's move!" He shouted, leading the way towards the entrance. Kotu followed closely behind, taking potshots to keep the Army troopers from returning fire. Baxter didn't stop until he reached the main entrance where he was greeted by Jax. "What's your status?" Baxter questioned over the chaotic sounds of blaster weapons.

"We breached about two minutes ago! Chaz and Ember both went in, weapons blazing. I've taken a few potshots, but the Imps have been doing a wonderful job of keeping me pinned down." Jax explained before leaning out and taking a shot with his DH-17 blaster pistol that he had picked up back on Nar Shaddaa. "Chaz and the big guy are both apparently impervious to blaster fire!" He said spitefully as he was driven back into cover by the defending Imperials.

Kotu took the opportunity to speak. "Something's not right here. Regular Army troopers trusted to guard a top secret facility? It doesn't make sense." He stated, before leaning out to take down an Army trooper who had the bright idea to try and use a rocket launcher in close quarter combat. He, however, didn't get the chance to fire the launcher, leaving it to fall to the ground.

"Agreed, but for now let's focus on the task at hand. Jax, cover me." Baxter ordered before storming out into the open and charging into the compound, joining both Chaz and Ember in the fray of things. He could hear Carture firing his sniper almost nonstop and wondered how there could still be any Imperials left to defeat. Baxter quickly found cover behind a storage box near both Chaz and Ember.

They were behind the same cover, alternating their fire as to let the other reload. "It is good to see you, Captain!" Ember shouted over the sound of fire before letting loose a barrage from his RT-97C blaster rifle on two Army troopers who had stepped out of cover to fire at the assaulting team.

"Yeah, great to be here. Keep firing!" Baxter shouted, leaning out to fire his own weapon. The mercenary Captain was starting to get the feeling that Kotu was right. These troopers weren't even sufficient enough to stop a team of mercenaries, much less anyone else with a blaster and half a mind for tactics. Granted, Baxter had a sniper, two heavy weapons specialists, and a demolitions expert who knew her way around a rocket launcher, but still they should not be tearing through these Imperials that easily.

Just as he finished his thought, the blaster fire began to die down. Most of the Army troopers lie dead or dying and the others had retreated into the facility itself. Baxter quickly activated his comlink. "Raena, Carture, get Alexander and his boys down here and get this CR90 prepped to fly. Get _Hellbound_ on the line and have Stone drop off some crew to help load up anything valuable. Everybody else, form up on me. We're going to clear the underground facility." He ordered before turning his comlink off.

Ember and Chaz were behind him quickly, followed closely by Jax and Kotu. "Captain, let me go first. The underground facility is defended better than you may expect. It is rather small, but the corridors are long and can become confusing to someone who does not know them well. I know the way to the main cloning area. We destroy that, we effective destroy the facility." Ember explained while reloading his blaster.

Baxter hesitantly agreed. "Very well. Just be careful, big guy." He stated, holding his blaster at the ready as Ember led the way into the underground. Baxter walked behind him, followed by Kotu in the middle, then Chaz, and Jax was protecting their flank. It was a rather cramp fit, but they all managed. Their first resistance came in the way of two troopers holding a junction that split into two separate corridors.

They were, however, quickly dispatched by Ember's heavy blaster fire before even Baxter had time to react. Baxter knew he shouldn't be surprised. The Krish was bred and trained to be a warrior after all and his skills with a blaster proved it. Ember was definitely someone Baxter was happy to have on his side. Ember led them through the left corridor and, after dealing with three more poorly trained troopers, they entered the main cloning area.

It was smaller than Baxter expected and had far fewer cloning embryos than he thought. "This was only the initial testing center. They'll move the facility to a larger setup when the Imperials were ready. At least they would if we were not about to set explosive charges." Ember explained through clenched teeth.

Baxter had a feeling blowing up what was, essentially, Ember's brothers was going to have an impact on him. "They're not all you." Baxter stated, patting the Krish on his shoulder.

Ember simply nodded before turning to Kotu. "Let us cleanse this foul place." He stated simply, opening the backpack he was carrying and handing several charges to the Sergeant-At-Arms while Jax moved to one of the nearby terminals.

"I can erase the data from here. I'll just access the data folders. Kriff, there's an encryption. A little better quality than standard Imperial crap they usually use. Might take a second." Jax paused for a few moments while Kotu and Ember set charged on various places. "Alright, I've got access to the database. Purging the files as ordered" Another pause. "Done. It's wiped clean." Jax stated, moving away from the terminal.

Baxter looked at him questioningly. "Easy as that?" He questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Trust me, boss. It's much easier to destroy a database than to build one. It's wiped clean and I even corrupted the operating system while I was at it. That will make sure all of the terminals in this facility would be unusable for at least a week. Not that it matters. We're blowing this place up anyway. Speaking of which, where are all the personnel? Aren't there supposed to be scientists or something?" Jax questioned, looking around the large room.

Ember responded to the slicer's question first. "There is a retreat for them in case of emergencies. A place to hide until things are brought under control by the soldiers. It will not save them from this explosion." He explained simply, setting the last of the thermal charges.

"I've setup the remote detonator." Kotu stated, handing the detonator to Baxter.

Baxter took it and secured it to his utility belt before motioning for the rest of the team to follow him. "Let's get out of here." He ordered before jogging back into the corridor from whence they came. It only took them several minutes before they were back at the entrance to the underground. They exited the facility and found that while they were underground Hellbound had dropped off a crew of ten to help load any supplies or items of value onto the CR90 corvette.

Upon closer inspection, Baxter found that the corvette had been heavily modified by its Imperial owners. It held a large hangar bay that could hold eight starfighters, had a large arrangement of weapons, including laser turrets for point-defense against enemy fighters, an upgraded hyperdrive, and better engines as to accommodate to the ship's larger size.

It was when he inspected the ship that Baxter's suspicions were confirmed. These were not standard Imperial forces that they were fighting. The Army trooper's uniforms confirmed that. They weren't standard Imperial uniforms. They were all black and they were using older Clone Wars era DC-15A blaster rifles. They were, more than likely, soldiers in the employment of the sector's Imperial governor. A Moff.

Baxter heard Kotu sigh as he picked up on of the DC-15A's from a fallen trooper. "This brings me back, sir. This was the first weapon I ever used. The DC-15A. Wonderful weapon. Old and outdated now when it comes to the Empire, though. We're probably dealing with a private militia of a-" Baxter cut him off.

"A Moff, I know. No standard Imperial fleet would use a CR90 in that configuration. We've just provoked a sector commander. We're probably going to pay for it in the long run, but who knows. May turn out profitable for us in the end." Baxter stated in optimism as Alexander walked over to the two of them.

"Sir." Alexander spoke, gaining Baxter's attention. "We found eight fighter craft aboard the CR90. Four Dagger-class starfighters, two Dianoga-class assault fighters, and two Z-95 AF4 Headhunters. This is not standard Imperial." He stated.

Baxter nodded his head. "Yeah, we know. Those craft are old. The Dagger-classes are the predecessor to the TIE-fighters and the Dianoga-class is bulky and heavily armed. The Z-95 AF4's are a good fighter on their own." He paused and considered his options carefully. "Let's get this CR90 out of here. Who knows if any of these Moff militia members are lurking out there." He then turned to everybody. "Let's hustle!" The Captain shouted to the crew as they loaded the valuable stuff aboard the CR90. "Today was a good day."


	6. Chapter 6

**_ Baxter's Irregulars: Errant Empire  
>Chapter 6: <em>****_The Enemy  
>Fort Stalwart, planet Sirpar, <em>****_Sirpar System _**

**_14th Day of the 6th Month, 17 BBY_**

* * *

><p>An Imperial lieutenant practically sprinted down the long corridors of the near impregnable Imperial base, Fort Stalwart, as he headed towards the office of the Arkanis sector governor. He knew that he would probably be disciplined for the news he was bringing to his Moff, but his loyalty demanded that he shared the information with his Moff.<strong><em><br>_**

The lieutenant came to a half in front of the door to the office, which was guarded by two of the best of Moff's personal militia force. They wore a garment similar to standard Imperial Stormtroopers. Their helmets were more akin to the helmets worn by Emperor Palpatine's Royal Guard with red faceplates and their armor was black with slate gray trim. They also wore black kamas, traditional Mandalorian beltspats that were designed as anti-blast armor, attatched to their belts. They wore the symbol of their Moff, a talon, on their breastplates. It was also used as their namesake. They were known as the Talon troopers, the elite of the elite when it came to the Moff's personal militia.

The lieutenant showed the Talon troopers his idea and was allowed to enter the office. It was a large, luxurious suite that doubled as the Moff's personal home away from home. His desk was made from the wood of a Kashyyk Wroshyr tree. Behind the desk was a large window that, in emergencies, could be covered by a large automated durasteel cover. The room was adorned with trophies and other oddities that the Moff had purchased from exotic dealers and black market sources. In a glass protected case sat a double bladed lightsaber, the weapon of the Jedi. Mounted on the walls were several different heads of exotic and dangerous species, such as the Katarn from Kashyyk and a Dire-cat from Corellia.

On the Moff's desk was a terminal and several models of ships, including a model of the three thousand year old Hsarrower-class dreadnaught and a model of the newer Victory II-class star destroyer. "Amazing the similarities between the star destroyers, isn't it, Lieutenant?" A dark voice spoke from behind the desk, sending chills up the lieutenant's spine.

"Yes, sir." The lieutenant was about to go on before the Moff interrupted him.

"The Harrower-class from the old Sith Empire three thousand years ago and the new Victory II-class from the current Empire. Both effective, both lacking... artistic imagination. There is nothing incredibly substantial about these two ships. Except one thing." The Moff paused and spun his luxurious chair around to face the lieutenant. "They inspire fear." The Moff was a forty two year old man that hailed from Anaxes. He was raised to be a military leader, becoming one of the Republic's best admirals during the Clone Wars. He was entrusted with one of the first sixteen hundred meter Tector-class star destroyers near the beginning of the war.

His ship, called _Rampant_, defeated many Separatist ships in space combat, including five Providence-class destroyers. When the Imperial order came to be and he was made a Moff, Rampant was given to him to use in his personal defense fleet by the Emperor himself. "I'm sorry, sir. I must inform you of the situation on Tatooine." The lieutenant stated, gaining a stare of resentment from the Moff.

"Unless it is news of progress in the cloning research, I do not wish to hear it." The Moff explained, waving his hand in dismissal.

The lieutenant stayed, against his better judgement. "Sir, the cloning facility has been destroyed and your CR90 carrier has been stolen. It happened last night." He explained.

The Moff looked at the lieutenant blankly, comprehending what he had just heard. "Very well. Prepare deployment of the Rampant Fleet and the Talon Corps ahead of schedule. It seems our move has been forced by the Empire." He explained.

"Sir, it wasn't an Empire attack. We were able to salvage a piece of footage from one of the facility's security cameras." The lieutenant explained, setting a photo he had been carrying down on the Moff's desk. "This was all we recovered." He explained as the Moff looked at the picture.

It revealed a Krish, one of the species the Moff's scientists had been experimenting on, leading a group of humans through a corridor. They were dressed in various pieces of armor and had a wide arrangement of weaponry. "That is, at least, one good thing. Our operations have not been discovered by the Empire as of yet. These..." He paused to consider what to call them. "Rebels, I suppose, are worrisome." The Moff paused and started writing orders on a piece of paper. When he had finished he handed them to the lieutenant. "Give these orders to Captain Laton aboard the Vindicator-class heavy cruiser _Perilous_ at once." He ordered.

"What shall I tell him?"

"Make an example of this group, on behalf of Moff Talon."


	7. Chapter 7

**_ Baxter's Irregulars: Errant Empire  
>Chapter 7: <em>****_Austan Asteroid Cluster  
>Arkanis Sector<em>**

**_19th Day of the 6th Month, 17 BBY_**

Vheto Baxter smirked as his newly acquired CR90 corvette-carrier, _Tatooine Dreams_, came out of hyperspace into the Austan Asteroid Cluster. The asteroid field was located in the same sector as Tatooine and was as good of a place as any to lay low. They had just stolen from the Arkanis Sector's Moff six days ago and Baxter was not keen on being found by the Moff's personal militia.

The two ships, _Hellbound_ and _Tatooine Dreams_, had been jumping around the Arkanis Sector searching for a place to lay low when Baxter had seen the Austan Asteroid Cluster on the Arkanis Sector map. It had been recorded onto the map after it was the site of several skirmishes between Republic and Confederate forces in 21 BBY. The asteroid field and the Austan System it was in, unlike many systems in the galaxy, was completely devoid of any population. Nobody lived in the system.

The asteroids lacked minerals worthy of mining operations and the only planetoid in system was a desolate gas giant with virtually nothing of value. Within the system itself, there were still signs of battle from the Clone Wars, including destroyed ship hulks from both the Confederate and the Republic forces that had fought here within the asteroid field. At least twenty destroyed hulks floated through the asteroid field. "Welcome to the Austan Asteroid Fields, Captain." Erikson, one of Alexander's pilots who was flying _Tatooine Dreams_, said to Baxter.

_"Tatooine Dreams, this is Hellbound. Captain Baxter, what are your orders?"_ Stone's voice came over _Tatooine's Dreams_ communications, requesting orders from the mercenary leader.

Baxter responded. "_Hellbound_, we're going to do something that's going to take a lot of time and a lot of skill. I want to maneuver several of these ship hulks, the Recusant-class light destroyer hulk and the Carrack-class light cruiser wreck ought to do, to one of these larger asteroids. We're going to use them as a base of operation." He explained. He wanted to, essentially, mount the two ships to a large enough asteroid, link them together, reseal their hulls, restore the life support and other power systems, and use them as a base of operations for the Irregulars to use as they please.

There was a pause from _Hellbound_. _"No offense, sir, but that's insane." _Stone responded, voice filled with skepticism.

"No more than usual, Stone." Baxter countered with a short chuckle. "We'll use _Hellbound_ to move the ships into position." He paused and took a minute to look at the local maps of the Austan Asteroid Cluster to find a suitable asteroid to use. The Captain then reengaged the communication to _Hellbound_. "We'll use Austan 331. It's about four thousand meters wide and hour hundred meters tall. Situated in almost the middle of the field. It's gonna take some skill to get the hulks there. Think you can get those two ships landed on that asteroid?" He questioned his second-in-command.

There was another pause before Stone spoke. _"Does a Wampa shit on Hoth? It's gonna take some time, but with the help of Alexander's pilots to guide Hellbound in I'll be able to bring the Recusant and the Pelta both to the asteroid. This is going to take awhile, sir."_ He stated.

Baxter smirked at Stone's confidence. "Agreed. Not like we have much else to do for the time being. He then turned to a different bridge crew member. "Take over for Erikson." He ordered the female crewmember who nodded and moved to do so. "Erikson, get down to the hangar and let Alexander know what's going on. Tell him to get you four launched. Have him use the Dagger starfighters." The Captain ordered, referring to one of the three new starfighter types they had. After the raid on the Tatooine

Erikson stood up, letting the other crewmember take over for him, and left the bridge to find the lead pilot. "Sir." One of the crew that had accompanied him in crewing the Irregular's new ship spoke. "How do you intend to secure the ships to the asteroid?" The crewman, a human by the name of Tarask, questioned.

"It's rather simple when said, but difficult in process. We're going to tether them to the surface and, essentially, weld them together. We'll use the large durasteel cables we found aboard this ship when we captured it to tether the ships securely to the surface. Then we restore power to the ships if possible. It'll be our own little space station. Outwardly, it just looks like two wrecks from a war long since over. Nothing more than a long forgotten battle site. Worse we'll have to deal with will be scavengers. If they even feel like risking with wreckage that may have live ordnance." Baxter explained, arms crossed as he watched the four Dagger-class starfighters race past the bridge after exiting the hangar of _Tatooine Dreams_.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Two Days Later<em>**

* * *

><p>Since the Irregulars' arrival in the Austan Asteroid Cluster, much had been accomplished by the thirty member mercenary group. Stone had been able to navigate both the Recusant and Carrack hulks above the large asteroid Austan 331. Alexander and his pilots had been able to tether the ships to the asteroid using ten heavy duty, extra strength durasteel cables and an EVA crew of six were currently working on welding the wrecks together by their docking chambers. If they were able to weld together the docking chambers and tether the wrecks to each other, that would supply enough support to keep the wrecks from breaking away from each other.<p>

Everything was going according to Baxter's plan. Baxter was still on _Tatooine Dreams_, he had essentially made it his lead ship, and was sitting in the ship's luxurious captain's quarters. It was a large room, much larger than his previous room aboard _Hellbound_, with a queen size bed, a desk, and a small lounge area with a fully stocked bookshelf. It also sported it's own refresher with a one person shower, making it better than most ship's captain's quarters.

Baxter was finally taking the opportunity to relax and sit down for awhile with a book called The Fallacy of War by the philosopher Codus Romanthus. It had been a favorite of Baxter's during the Clone Wars, but it was banned by the Empire soon after it rose to power. Apparently, being a starship captain for a Moff had its advantages because whoever _Tatooine Dreams_ was originally commanded by had quite a few literary pieces deemed unhealthy to the Empire and sequentially banned.

Just as the Captain opened the book to begin reading, there was a knock at the door. He sighed, stood from his seat, set the book down on a end table that sat next to the chair, and made his way to the door. "Who is it?" Baxter questioned through the door.

"It's Tarask, sir." The crewman responded to Baxter's question.

Baxter opened the door and looked at the crewman expectantly. "What is it?" He questioned with a raised brow.

"Sorry to disturb, Captain." Tarask apologized before continuing. "We were contacted by one of our former employers, one Dargus Taske of Dasher Starship Repair Solutions. He's patched through to our communications on an encrypted channel that can't be tracked. At least that was what Jax told me to tell you." The crewman informed him.

The Captain wore a confused expression on his face, but nodded his head nevertheless. "Let's go." He ordered, pushing his way past the younger crewman and leading the way towards the bridge. Tarask followed closely behind the Captain, but said nothing along the way as they navigated the heavily modified one hundred and fifty meter long corvette-carrier that was _Tatooine Dreams_.

When the two reached the bridge, they were met by Jax who handed Baxter a holoprojector with a projection of a Zabrak male that he could only assume was Dargus Taske. In the background, Baxter could see what looked to be a bridge of some sort of starship. _"I need your help, Captain."_ Taske blurted out, going straight to the point.

"I'm listening." Baxter said, leaning back and crossing his arms, awaiting Taske's explanation.

_"Me and my crew are kriffed. After you left, my crew was hired to do some work for the Empire. I had no idea why they were using us, but they did. They blindfolded us, put us on a ship, and flew us to who knows where. We were working on the engines of a ship that we could never see from the outside, but it had to be a big ship. I'm talking huge. I overheard two officers talking several days ago."_ Taske paused to sigh before continuing. _"They were going to eliminate the crew and myself upon completion and write it off to the company as an accident."_ He explained with a grim expression.

Baxter frowned. The Empire had done things like these. "What do you need me to do, Taske?" He questioned with a raised eyebrow. "I don't see how I'd be of help in this situation." The Captain added.

Taske nodded his head, understanding why the Captain was confused. _"I understand, but we've already done the hard part. This morning, me and my crew of thirty escaped aboard a Tartan patrol corvette. We have no where to return to. The Empire knows our names and of our homes. We've got nowhere else to go and my crew is relying on me to keep them safe. We're not fighters, but we're willing to learn if need be."_ He explained.

"What are you trying to ask me, Taske?" Baxter asked.

_"We're asking if you'll let us join you."_ Taske finally stated, hands folded behind his back.

Baxter recognized the advantages and disadvantages of taking the thirty one member crew. If he took them, he'd receive a new a ship and over thirty more people to his cause. On the other hand, however, he'd have even more wanted fugitives. Not like that matter a whole lot. It could also be a trap set by the Empire, but Baxter had a feeling that it wasn't. He took a moment to consider his options before responding ."Okay, Taske. One of my crew is going to send you coordinates to our location. We'll talk about pay and what have you when you arrive." The Captain explained.

Taske smiled and bowed respectfully. _"Most of us will simply be grateful to have a place where we are safe from the Empire. I owe you my life, as does my crew."_ The Zabrak stated before Baxter ended the transmission with a nod.

Baxter handed the holoprojector to Tarask. "Give the Taske coordinates to our location." He ordered. "Have weapons and the hyperdrive ready in case this is a trap." The Captain added before activating a broadcast that included both _Hellbound_ and the fighters. "We've got guests arriving in several hours. In a Tartan-class patrol cruiser. It's a friendly ship, so don't panic. It's one of our former employers and his crew. They were setup by the Empire and that's all that really matters. The crew and the ship will be joining us." He explained before ending the communication.

When the ship arrived, several hours later, Baxter was happy to see that, so far, it was not a trap. He had approached the ship cautiously with both _Hellbound's_ and _Tatooine Dreams'_ weapons ready to fire on her in a moments notice. After Baxter had given his approval, _Tatooine Dreams_ had guided the ship into the asteroid field while _Hellbound_ moved to patrol the system.

_Tatooine Dreams_ and the Tartan-class cruiser docked with each other via an airtight docking bridge. Baxter stood in front of the doors, waiting for them to open, as several of his crewmen stood next to him with DC-15A blaster rifles from the CR90 corvette's armory in case this was a trap. Baxter had his holster on his utility belt unbuckled and was ready to grasp for his SE-14r blaster pistol in a moment's notice. They had already scanned the Tartan-class patrol ship for any explosives, but they had come up with nothing.

Kotu stood at Baxter's side, his DLT-19 heavy blaster rifle slung over his shoulder. The Sergeant-At-Arms had chosen to don his full set of Phase-II clone armor yet again, with several modifications. The clone had modified his helmet to make it more akin to a scout trooper's helmet. When the Irregulars had visited Harloen, Kotu had picked up the items he needed to heavily modify his armor. He had picked up fire resistant, khaki colored material and had used it to shield the sides of his head, draping it from either side of his helmet, much of his torso, some of his back, and it hung from the belt around his waist to his knees.

It reminded Kotu of the beltspat kamas that were worn by Mandalorians. He had used black paint to color stripes onto the trim of his armor. Kotu had a combat harness over the fire resistant material that held thermal detonators, extra ammo, and a holster for his backup DL-18 blaster pistol. The Sergeant-At-Arms also picked up a harness that could act as a parachute rig for high-altitude drops, similar to the clone paratroopers of the former Republic. The clone had also added a set of macro-binoculars to his helmet. "You think this is a good idea, sir?" Kotu questioned through his helmet's vocalizer.

"We've trusted Taske before, we're trusting him again. Plus, he's bringing us the prospect of thirty one more members ready to fight the Imperials and a ship to boot. This is worth the risk." Baxter explained simply, arms crossed over his armored, slate gray breastplate. He had added black stripes around the trim of his armor, as had many of his team. He, of course, had his comlink earpiece that had a microphone that came down to in front of his mouth. The mercenary Captain had added a black square military-style cap to his outfit. Wasn't much in the way of protection, but a headshot from a blaster rifle, even with an armored helmet, was almost certain death.

"Understood." Kotu stated with a simple nod, his blaster ready as the doors to the docking bridge began to open.

It only took a second for the hatch to raise and the Zabrak Dargus Taske and several men of various species in jumpsuits were revealed. Many of them were equipped with standard issue Imperial E-11 blaster rifles and several of them looked injured. A few had blood on their slate gray jumpsuits while others had bandaged injuries. Taske looked relatively unharmed except for a bandage that was wrapped around his right knee. The Zabrak limped forward, assessing Tatooine Dreams' hangar as he moved towards Baxter. "Captain Baxter." Taske said with a polite bow. "I wish our meeting was on more pleasant of terms, but in case the gravity of our situation isn't obvious we're a bit desperate." The former foreman explained.

"I understand, Taske. We'll get our medical personnel to tend to your crew as soon as we can. If you would, get your most wounded to the infirmary. One of my men will show you the way." Baxter stated, nodding to one of the crew who had accompanied him to show them the way.

Taske allowed himself a smile. "Thank you. I'm assuming that you, however, wish to see our prize." He stated.

"I do indeed, Taske. Let's see what you've brought."


End file.
